Gaming System Having Time Period Based Progressives

ABSTRACT

A method of awarding a progressive comprises displaying a progressive award which increments over time as wagers are received and activating the progressive award for a predetermined first time period. During the first time period, a first portion of each eligible wager received is added to the progressive award, each eligible wager associated with a corresponding player inputting the wager. For each eligible wager received, a first number of entries are allocated into a selection for awarding the progressive award. The method further comprises selecting a winning entry from all entries received during the first time period and awarding the progressive award to a player associated with the selected winning entry.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to gaming systems, and methodsfor playing wagering games, and more particularly, to gaming systemshaving time period based progressive awards.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Gaming terminals, such as slot machines, video poker machines and thelike, have been a cornerstone of the gaming industry for several years.Generally, the popularity of such machines with players is dependent onthe likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machineand the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to otheravailable gaming options.

To increase appeal, some gaming terminals may display a plurality ofwagering games to offer greater opportunities for winning awards. Oneway to further excitement and entertainment value of such gamingterminals is to display and allow participation in progressive awards.Additional interest can be generated by using time based progressiveawards.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of awarding aprogressive comprises displaying a progressive award which incrementsover time as wagers are received and activating the progressive awardfor a predetermined first time period. During the first time period, afirst portion of each eligible wager received is added to theprogressive award, each eligible wager associated with a correspondingplayer inputting the wager. For each eligible wager received, a firstnumber of entries are allocated into a selection for awarding theprogressive award. The method further comprises selecting a winningentry from all entries received during the first time period andawarding the progressive award to a player associated with the selectedwinning entry.

According to another aspect of the invention, a gaming system comprisesat least one wager input device, at least one gaming terminal, at leastone display, and at least one controller. The at least one controller isoperative to (i) cause the at least one display to display a progressiveaward which increments over time as wagers are received; (ii) activatethe progressive award for a predetermined first time period; (iii)during the first time period, add a first portion of each eligible wagerreceived to the progressive award, each eligible wager associated with acorresponding player inputting the wager; (iv) for each eligible wagerreceived, allocate a first number of entries into a selection forawarding the progressive award; (v) select a winning entry from allentries received during the first time period; and (vi) award theprogressive award to a player associated with the selected winningentry.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, a method of awarding aprogressive comprises displaying a first progressive award and a secondprogressive award, activating the first progressive award for apredetermined first time period, and activating the second progressiveaward for a predetermined second time period. The method furthercomprises, during the first and second time periods, respectively,adding a first portion of each eligible wager received to the firstprogressive award and adding a second portion of each eligible wagerreceived to the second progressive award, each eligible wager associatedwith a corresponding player inputting the wager. The method furthercomprises, for each eligible wager received during the first timeperiod, allocating a first number of entries into a selection forawarding the first progressive and for each eligible wager receivedduring the second time period, allocating a second number of entriesinto a selection for awarding the second progressive. The method furthercomprises selecting a first winning entry from all entries receivedduring the first time period and awarding the first progressive award toa first player associated with the selected first winning entry, andselecting a second winning entry from all entries received during thesecond time period and awarding the second progressive award to a secondplayer associated with the selected second winning entry.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, a method of awarding aprogressive comprises displaying a progressive award that incrementsduring a predetermined time period, receiving eligible wagers during thetime period, each eligible wager being associated with a correspondingplayer inputting the eligible wager, for each eligible wager receivedduring the time period, allocating a number of entries into a selectionfor awarding the progressive award, selecting a winning entry from allentries received during the time period, and awarding the progressiveaward to a player associated with the selected winning entry.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, one or more computerreadable storage media is encoded with instructions for directing agaming system to perform the above methods.

Additional aspects of the invention will be apparent to those ofordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of variousembodiments, which is made with reference to the drawings, a briefdescription of which is provided below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 a is a perspective view of a free-standing gaming terminalaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1 b is a perspective view of a handheld gaming terminal accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a gaming system according to an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an image of a basic-game screen of a wagering game that may bedisplayed on a gaming terminal, according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 is an image of a bonus-game screen of a wagering game that may bedisplayed on a gaming terminal, according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is an image of a gaming system having time period basedprogressive awards.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a gaming system suitable for displaying andadministering time period based progressive awards.

FIG. 7 is a table displaying an example accounting of wagers received ina gaming system having time period based progressive awards.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way ofexample in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. Itshould be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to belimited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many differentforms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described indetail preferred embodiments of the invention with the understandingthat the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification ofthe principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broadaspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated.

Referring to FIG. 1 a, there is shown a gaming terminal 10 similar tothose used in gaming establishments, such as casinos. With regard to thepresent invention, the gaming terminal 10 may be any type of gamingterminal and may have varying structures and methods of operation. Forexample, the gaming terminal 10 may be an electromechanical gamingterminal configured to play mechanical slots, or it may be an electronicgaming terminal configured to play a video casino game, such as slots,keno, poker, blackjack, roulette, craps, etc. It should be understoodthat although the gaming terminal 10 is shown as a free-standingterminal of the upright type, it may take on a wide variety of otherforms such as a free-standing terminal of the slant-top type, a portableor handheld device primarily used for gaming as shown in FIG. 1 b, amobile telecommunications device such as a mobile telephone or personaldigital assistant (PDA), a counter-top or bar-top gaming terminal, orother personal electronic device such as a portable television, MP3player, entertainment device, etc.

The illustrated gaming terminal 10 comprises a cabinet or housing 12.For output devices, the gaming terminal 10 may include a primary displayarea 14, a secondary display area 16, and one or more audio speakers 18.The primary display area 14 and/or secondary display area 16 may displayinformation associated with wagering games, non-wagering games,community games, progressives, advertisements, services, premiumentertainment, text messaging, emails, alerts or announcements,broadcast information, subscription information, etc. For input devices,the gaming terminal 10 may include a bill validator 20, a coin acceptor22, one or more information readers 24, one or more player-input devices26, and one or more player-accessible ports 28 (e.g., an audio outputjack for headphones, a video headset jack, a wirelesstransmitter/receiver, etc.). While these typical components found in thegaming terminal 10 are described below, it should be understood thatnumerous other peripheral devices and other elements may exist and maybe used in any number of combinations to create various forms of agaming terminal.

The primary display area 14 may include a mechanical-reel display, avideo display, or a combination thereof in which a transmissive videodisplay in front of the mechanical-reel display portrays a video imagesuperimposed over the mechanical-reel display. Further informationconcerning the latter construction is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.6,517,433 to Loose et al. entitled “Reel Spinning Slot Machine WithSuperimposed Video Image,” which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety. The video display may be a cathode ray tube (CRT), ahigh-resolution liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display, a lightemitting diode (LED), a DLP projection display, an electroluminescent(EL) panel, or any other type of display suitable for use in the gamingterminal 10. The primary display area 14 may include one or morepaylines 30 (see FIG. 3) extending along a portion thereof. In theillustrated embodiment, the primary display area 14 comprises aplurality of mechanical reels 32 and a video display 34 such as atransmissive display (or a reflected image arrangement in otherembodiments) in front of the mechanical reels 32. If the wagering gameconducted via the gaming terminal 10 relics upon the video display 34only and not the mechanical reels 32, the mechanical reels 32 may beremoved from the interior of the terminal and the video display 34 maybe of a non-transmissive type. Similarly, if the wagering game conductedvia the gaming terminal 10 relies upon the mechanical reels 32 but notthe video display 34, the video display 34 may be replaced with aconventional glass panel. Further, the underlying mechanical-reeldisplay may be replaced with a video display such that the primarydisplay area 14 includes layered video displays, or may be replaced withanother mechanical or physical member such as a mechanical wheel (e.g.,a roulette game), dice, a pachinko board, or a diorama presenting athree-dimensional model of a game environment.

Video images in the primary display area 14 and/or the secondary displayarea 16 may be rendered in two-dimensional (e.g., using FlashMacromedia™) or three-dimensional graphics (e.g., using Renderware™).The images may be played back (e.g., from a recording stored on thegaming terminal 10), streamed (e.g., from a gaming network), or receivedas a TV signal (e.g., either broadcast or via cable). The images may beanimated or they may be real-life images, either prerecorded (e.g., inthe case of marketing/promotional material) or as live footage, and theformat of the video images may be an analog format, a standard digitalformat, or a high-definition (HD) digital format.

The player-input devices 26 may include a plurality of buttons 36 on abutton panel and/or a touch screen 38 mounted over the primary displayarea 14 and/or the secondary display area 16 and having one or more softtouch keys 40. The player-input devices 26 may further comprisetechnologies that do not rely upon touching the gaming terminal, such asspeech-recognition technology, gesture-sensing technology, eye-trackingtechnology, etc.

The information reader 24 is preferably located on the front of thehousing 12 and may take on many forms such as a ticket reader, cardreader, bar code scanner, wireless transceiver (e.g., RFID, Bluetooth,etc.), biometric reader, or computer-readable-storage-medium interface.Information may be transmitted between a portable medium (e.g., ticket,voucher, coupon, casino card, smart card, debit card, credit card, etc.)and the information reader 24 for accessing an account associated withcashless gaming, player tracking, game customization, saved-game state,data transfer, and casino services as more fully disclosed in U.S.Patent Publication No. 2003/0045354 entitled “Portable Data Unit forCommunicating With Gaming Machine Over Wireless Link,” which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The account may bestored at an external system 46 (see FIG. 2) as more fully disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 6,280,328 to Holch et al. entitled “Cashless ComputerizedVideo Game System and Method,” which is incorporated herein byreferenced in its entirety, or directly on the portable medium. Toenhance security, the individual carrying the portable medium may berequired to enter a secondary independent authenticator (e.g., password,PIN number, biometric, etc.) to access their account.

FIG. 1 b illustrates a portable or handheld device primarily used todisplay and/or conduct wagering games. The handheld device mayincorporate the same features as the gaming terminal 10 or variationsthereof. A more detailed description of a handheld device that may beutilized with the present invention can be found in PCT PatentApplication No. PCT/US2007/000792 filed Jan. 26, 2007, entitled“Handheld Device for Wagering Games,” which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

Turning now to FIG. 2, the various components of the gaming terminal 10are controlled by a central processing unit (CPU) 42, also referred toherein as a controller or processor (such as a microcontroller ormicroprocessor). The CPU 42 can include any suitable processor, such asan Intel® Pentium processor, Intel® Core 2 Duo processor, AMD Opteron™processor, or UltraSPARC® processor. To provide gaming functions, thecontroller 42 executes one or more game programs stored in one or morecomputer readable storage media in the form of memory 44 or othersuitable storage device. The controller 42 uses a random numbergenerator (RNG) to randomly generate a wagering game outcome from aplurality of possible outcomes. Alternatively, the outcome may becentrally determined using either an RNG or pooling scheme at a remotecontroller included, for example, within the external system 46. Itshould be appreciated that the controller 42 may include one or moremicroprocessors, including but not limited to a master processor, aslave processor, and a secondary or parallel processor.

The controller 42 is coupled to the system memory 44 and also to amoney/credit detector 48. The system memory 44 may comprise a volatilememory (e.g., a random-access memory (RAM)) and a non-volatile memory(e.g., an EEPROM). The system memory 44 may include multiple RAM andmultiple program memories. The money/credit detector 48 signals theprocessor that money and/or credits have been input via a value-inputdevice, such as the bill validator 20, coin acceptor 22, or via othersources, such as a cashless gaming account, etc. These components may belocated internal or external to the housing 12 of the gaming terminal 10and connected to the remainder of the components of the gaming terminal10 via a variety of different wired or wireless connection methods. Themoney/credit detector 48 detects the input of funds into the gamingterminal 10 (e.g., via currency, electronic funds, ticket, card, etc.)that are generally converted into a credit balance available to theplayer for wagering on the gaming terminal 10. The credit detector 48detects when a player places a wager (e.g., via a player-input device26) to play the wagering game, the wager then generally being deductedfrom the credit balance. The money/credit detector 48 sends acommunication to the controller 42 that a wager has been detected andalso communicates the amount of the wager.

As seen in FIG. 2, the controller 42 is also connected to, and controls,the primary display area 14, the player-input device 26, and a payoffmechanism 50. The payoff mechanism 50 is operable in response toinstructions from the controller 42 to award a payoff to the player inresponse to certain winning outcomes that might occur in the base game,the bonus game(s), or via an external game or event. The payoff may beprovided in the form of money, redeemable points, services or anycombination thereof. Such payoff may be associated with a ticket (from aticket printer 52), portable data unit (e.g., a card), coins, currencybills, accounts, and the like. The payoff amounts distributed by thepayoff mechanism 50 are determined by one or more pay tables stored inthe system memory 44.

Communications between the controller 42 and both the peripheralcomponents of the gaming terminal 10 and the external system 46 occurthrough input/output (I/O) circuit 56, which can include any suitablebus technologies, such as an AGTL+ frontside bus and a PCI backside bus.Although the I/O circuit 56 is shown as a single block, it should beappreciated that the I/O circuit 56 may include a number of differenttypes of I/O circuits. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the componentsof the gaming terminal 10 can be interconnected according to anysuitable interconnection architecture (e.g., directly connected,hypercube, etc.).

The I/O circuit 56 is connected to an external system interface 58,which is connected to the external system 46. The controller 42communicates with the external system 46 via the external systeminterface 58 and a communication path (e.g., serial, parallel, IR, RC,10bT, etc.). The external system 46 may include a gaming network, othergaming terminals, a gaming server, a remote controller, communicationshardware, or a variety of other interfaced systems or components.

Controller 42, as used herein, comprises any combination of hardware,software, and/or firmware that may be disposed or resident inside and/oroutside of the gaming terminal 10 and may communicate with and/orcontrol the transfer of data between the gaming terminal 10 and a bus,another computer, processor, or device and/or a service and/or anetwork. The controller 42 may comprise one or more controllers orprocessors. In FIG. 2, the controller 42 in the gaming terminal 10 isdepicted as comprising a CPU, but the controller 42 may alternativelycomprise a CPU in combination with other components, such as the I/Ocircuit 56 and the system memory 44. The controller 42 is operable toexecute all of the various gaming methods and other processes disclosedherein.

The gaming terminal 10 may communicate with external system 46 (in awired or wireless manner) such that each terminal operates as a “thinclient” having relatively less functionality, a “thick client” havingrelatively more functionality, or with any range of functionalitytherebetween (e.g., a “rich client”). In general, a wagering gameincludes an RNG for generating a random number, game logic fordetermining the outcome based on the randomly generated number, and gameassets (e.g., art, sound, etc.) for presenting the determined outcome toa player in an audio-visual manner. The RNG, game logic, and game assetsmay be contained within the gaming terminal 10 (“thick client” gamingterminal), the external systems 46 (“thin client” gaming terminal), ordistributed therebetween in any suitable manner (“rich client” gamingterminal).

Referring now to FIG. 3, an image of a basic-game screen 60 adapted tobe displayed on the primary display area 14 is illustrated, according toone embodiment of the present invention. A player begins play of a basicwagering game by providing a wager. A player can operate or interactwith the wagering game using the one or more player-input devices 26.The controller 42, the external system 46, or both, in alternativeembodiments, operate(s) to execute a wagering game program causing theprimary display area 14 to display the wagering game that includes aplurality of visual elements.

The basic-game screen 60 may be displayed on the primary display area 14or a portion thereof. In FIG. 3, the basic-game screen 60 portrays aplurality of simulated movable reels 62 a-e. Alternatively oradditionally, the basic-game screen 60 may portray a plurality ofmechanical reels. The basic-game screen 60 may also display a pluralityof game-session meters and various buttons adapted to be actuated by aplayer.

In the illustrated embodiment, the game-session meters include a“credit” meter 64 for displaying a number of credits available for playon the terminal; a “lines” meter 66 for displaying a number of paylinesto be played by a player on the terminal; a “line bet” meter 68 fordisplaying a number of credits wagered (e.g., from 1 to 5 or morecredits) for each of the number of paylines played; a “total bet” meter70 for displaying a total number of credits wagered for the particularround of wagering; and a “paid” meter 72 for displaying an amount to beawarded based on the results of the particular round's wager. Theuser-selectable buttons may include a “collect” button 74 to collect thecredits remaining in the credits meter 64; a “help” button 76 forviewing instructions on how to play the wagering game; a “pay table”button 78 for viewing a pay table associated with the basic wageringgame; a “select lines” button 80 for changing the number of paylines(displayed in the lines meter 66) a player wishes to play; a “bet perline” button 82 for changing the amount of the wager which is displayedin the line-bet meter 68; a “spin reels” button 84 for moving the reels62 a-e; and a “max bet spin” button 86 for wagering a maximum number ofcredits and moving the reels 62 a-e of the basic wagering game. Whilethe gaming terminal 10 allows for these types of player inputs, thepresent invention does not require them and can be used on gamingterminals having more, less, or different player inputs.

Paylines 30 may extend from one of the payline indicators 88 a-i on theleft side of the basic-game screen 60 to a corresponding one of thepayline indicators 88 a-i on the right side of the screen 60. Aplurality of symbols 90 is displayed on the plurality of reels 62 a-c toindicate possible outcomes of the basic wagering game. A winningcombination occurs when the displayed symbols 90 correspond to one ofthe winning symbol combinations listed in a pay table stored in thememory 44 of the terminal 10 or in the external system 46. The symbols90 may include any appropriate graphical representation or animation,and may further include a “blank” symbol.

Symbol combinations may be evaluated as line pays or scatter pays. Linepays may be evaluated left to right, right to left, top to bottom,bottom to top, or any combination thereof by evaluating the number,type, or order of symbols 90 appearing along an activated payline 30.Scatter pays are evaluated without regard to position or paylines andonly require that such combination appears anywhere on the reels 62 a-e.While an embodiment with nine paylines is shown, a wagering game with nopaylines, a single payline, or any plurality of paylines will also workwith the present invention. Additionally, though an embodiment with fivereels is shown, a gaming terminal with any plurality of reels may alsobe used in accordance with the present invention.

Turning now to FIG. 4, a bonus game that may be included with a basicwagering game is illustrated, according to one embodiment. A bonus-gamescreen 92 includes an array of markers 94 located in a plurality ofcolumns and rows. The bonus game may be entered upon the occurrence of aspecial start-bonus game outcome (e.g., symbol trigger, mystery trigger,time-based trigger, etc.) in or during the basic wagering game.Alternatively, the illustrated game may be a stand-alone wagering game.

In the illustrated bonus game, a player selects, one at a time, from thearray of markers 94 to reveal an associated bonus-game outcome.According to one embodiment, each marker 94 in the array is associatedwith an award outcome 96 (e.g., credits or other non-negative outcomes)or an end-game outcome 98. In the illustrated example, a player hasselected an award outcome 96 with the player's first two selections (25credits and 100 credits, respectively). When one or more end-gameoutcome 98 is selected (as illustrated by the player's third pick), thebonus game is terminated and the accumulated award outcomes 96 areprovided to the player.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a gaming system 500 including a plurality oftime period based progressive awards is displayed. The system 500includes a plurality of gaming devices or terminals 510 a,b,c, each ofwhich include at least a primary display 514 a,b,c for displaying gameevents thereon. Each of the primary displays 514 a,b,c may be any formof display such as those described herein with reference to the freestanding and handheld gaming devices of FIGS. 1 a and 1 b. The primarydisplays 514 a,b,c may include display of a primary wagering game 560a,b,c, which in this embodiment are slot games as shown in FIG. 5. Theprimary wagering games 560 a,b,c may include a plurality of reels, whichmay be either electro-mechanical reels or simulations thereof on theprimary display 514 a,b,c. The reels may include a plurality of symbolsthereon which vary as the reels are spun and stopped. The symbols mayinclude any variety of graphical symbols, elements, or representations,including symbols which are associated with one or more themes of thegaming machine 510 a,b,c or system 500. The symbols may also include ablank symbol, or empty space. The primary wagering games 560 a,b,c shownon the various primary displays 514 a,b,c of the system 500 may be thesame, similar, or different in nature, game play, theme, denomination,formation, eligibility, etc.

As described herein the symbols landing on the active pay lines (the paylines for which a wager has been received) are evaluated for winningcombinations. A combination of symbols that lands on an active pay lineis a winning outcome for which an award may be paid in accordance with apaytable of the gaming device 510 a,b,c or system 500. The symbols onthe reels form an array or matrix of symbols, having a number of rowsand columns, which in the embodiment shown is three rows and fivecolumns. In alternate embodiments, the array may have greater or fewersymbols, and may take on a variety of different forms having greater orfewer rows and/or columns. The array may even comprise othernon-rectangular forms or arrangements of symbols.

The system 500 further includes a community display 580, which in thisembodiment is an LCD, plasma, or other flat-screen display mounted andpositioned above the plurality of gaming devices 510 a,b,c. Thecommunity display 580 displays a progressive award event 582 whichincludes at least one time based progressive jackpot or award 584. Inthe embodiment shown, the progressive award event 582 comprises twovarieties or levels of progressive jackpots 584 a,b, which include anHOURLY award 584 a and a DAILY award 584 b. When a progressive awardevent is triggered or occurs, one or more of the progressive awards 584a,b is awarded to one or more players. In the embodiment shown, theprogressive award event 582 comprises a plurality of time based jackpotsor awards 584 a,b. Thus, the triggering event for each of the awards 584a,b is the expiration of a predetermined time period 586 a,b associatedwith each of the awards 584 a,b. In the embodiment shown, the HOURLYaward 584 a is associated with a one-hour time period 586 a, such thatonce commenced, the progressive award 584 a is triggered and awarded atthe expiration of one hour of time. Similarly, the DAILY award 584 b isassociated with a one day (24 hour) time period 586 b, such that oncecommenced, the progressive award 586 is triggered and awarded at theexpiration of twenty four hours of time.

For each award 584 in the community event 582, the community display 580displays the current amount of the progressive award 584 a,b ($487.32and $10,497.56, respectively), the nature or type of the award (HOURLYand DAILY, respectively), and the time remaining in each time period 586a,b (thirty seven minutes and four hours and thirty seven minutes,respectively). In the embodiment shown, two levels or varieties ofprogressive awards 584 a,b are included in the community event 582. Inother embodiments, greater or fewer awards 584 may be utilized.Moreover, the awards 584 utilized in the community event 582 may beconfigured to correspond with a large variety of time period 586,including hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or any otherappropriate time period (such as quarter hour, half hour, etc.)

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the various levels of progressiveawards 584 a,b increase as a function of wagers input into the system500. Thus, in an embodiment, a portion of each wager is directed tofunding the progressive awards 584 a,b such that the progressive awards584 a,b increase incrementally for each wager input into the system 500.The progressive awards 584 a,b may be configured to increase continuallyuntil triggered or may be capped at some determined level. Whentriggered, each of the progressive awards 584 a,b may reset to a resetvalue, which in an embodiment is zero credits. In alternativeembodiments, other reset values may be used. Many funding schemes may beused to increment the progressive awards 584 a,b,c. The wagers may bereceived via various wager input devices, for example, via the gamingterminals 510 a,b,c, or any other appropriate wager input device of thesystem 500.

For each wager received from a particular player, that player receives acorresponding entry or number of entries into a random selection forawarding the respective award 584 upon the conclusion or expiration ofthe time period 586 associate with the award 584. Thus, for example, aplayer placing a minimum wager on a play of a wagering game 560 mayreceive one entry into the HOURLY award 584 a game and one entry intothe DAILY award 584 b game. Thus, the longer the player plays theprimary wagering game 560 (i.e. the more wagers he inputs into thesystem 500), the more entries he will receive into the variousprogressive awards 584 a,b drawings or selections. Moreover, in someembodiments, players making wagers which are greater than a minimumallowable wager may receive additional entries. For example, a playermaking a wager on a primary wagering game 560 which is five timesgreater than the minimum allowable wager will receive five entries intoeach of the HOURLY and DAILY award 584 a,b games.

At or after the expiration of the relevant time period 586 a,b, a randomselection is made from all available and received entries to select awinner of the corresponding award 584 a,b. In one embodiment, the randomselection is performed by a progressive controller that is also operableto collect and track all eligible entries received into the system. Theprogressive controller may also store the incrementing progressive awardvalues which may displayed on one or more displays to the player. Thus,at the end of a one hour time period, a randomly selected entry ischosen and the player associated with such entry is awarded the balanceof the HOURLY award 584 a. Similarly, at the end of a twenty four hourtime period, a randomly selected entry is chosen and the playerassociated with such entry is awarded the balance of the DAILY award 584b. It should be understood that both the selection and the awarding ofthe awarded 584 a,b, may occur at any appropriate time after theexpiration of the relevant time period 586 a,b. Thus, in someembodiments, a winning player is selected immediately after theexpiration of the time period 586. In other embodiments, a winner is notselected until sometime after the expiration of the timer period 586,for example at some predetermined time later in the day, the next day,or even at some other date in the future.

Moreover, the award 584 need not be provided immediately. In someembodiments, the award 584 may be provided immediately upon selection ofa winner, or the award 584 may be delayed until some appropriate time inthe future. It should be understood that a player need not be present orplaying on the system 500 to win or receive an award. In someembodiments, each entry received from a player is associated with aplayer identifier or account. If a winning entry corresponds to a playernot present or playing, the player identifier or account may be used torecall the player's information such that the award 584 may be providedto the player's account (incrementing a player account balance, forexample), or may be provided to the player later (recognizing the playerat a future gaming session, for example). Many other configurations arepossible. It should be understood, however, that regardless of when therandom selection is made and the award is provided, each selection ismade from eligible entries received during the time period 586 that theaward 584 was active. Thus, each award 584 is activated, remains activefor a predetermined time period (during which it increases in responsesto wagers received), and then is deactivated at the expiration of thetime period 586 associated with the award 584.

In some embodiments, only players who are registered with the system andhave an account or player identifier are eligible to win the availableprogressive awards. In other embodiments, players who are activelyplaying may be eligible regardless of whether or not they have a playeraccount or identifier. Thus, in such an embodiment, if a player ispresent the system can identify the terminal they are playing at, andaward the corresponding progressive award to such player. Therefore insome embodiments, all players playing at gaming terminals may be fundingthe progressive award, as described herein, while only a subset of suchplayers are eligible to receive a progressive award once triggered (forexample, only players with cards and/or accounts, only players presentat a gaming terminal, or any other appropriate eligibility requirement).

Turning to FIG. 6, a diagram of a gaming system 600 for displaying andadministering time based progressive awards is depicted. Shown in FIG.6, is an exemplary gaming system 610 which includes a central gamingfacility 612 connected by communication link 616 to a local gamingfacility 618, e.g. a casino, and by link 620 with the internet 622. Enduser computing devices including a gaming machine or terminal GM-M 624,e.g. a laptop computer, and wireless gaming machine or terminal WGM-M626, e.g. a personal digital assistant (PDA), function as clients of thecentral gaming facility 612. Laptop 624 is coupled via internet serviceprovider 628 and the internet 622 with the central gaming facility 612.The PDA 626 is connected with a wireless link by the wireless accesspoint 629 and internet 622 to the central gaming facility 612. As usedherein, “gaming” refers to the use of various games that support theplacing of wagers on the outcome of the games, e.g. a video pokermachine.

The central gaming facility 612 may represent a control location of agaming business operator that supports individual gaming users, e.g.users of PDA 626 and laptop 624, as well as other gaming facilities ofthe operator such as casino 618. The central gaming facility 612 in thisillustrative example may be geographically separated from the casino 618and the individual users. The central gaming facility 612 includes aworkstation 630 supported by data storage element 632 and a server 634that serves as a communication host for casino 618 and the individualusers via firewall 636. Requests for information and/or data receivedfrom the individual users are processed by server 634. The requestedinformation and/or data may be obtained from support resources, e.g.workstation 630 and data residing in storage element 632. The requestedinformation is sent from the server 634 to the requesting user'sdevices.

The local gaming facility 618 represents a casino and includes a server640 supported by a workstation 642, data storage element 644 and arouter 646. The router 646 supports communications with different gamingmachines or terminals GM(1)-GM(N) 650 by wired links 648. A wirelessaccess point 652 is connected by a wired link 648 to router 646 and bywireless communication links to wireless gaming machines or terminalsWGM(1)-WGM(N) 654.

At least some of the gaming machines 650 and some of the wireless gamingmachines 654 support the play of wagering games in which the user'sgaming machine functions in the client/server communication model withthe user's gaming machine being a client of server 640. The user'sgaming machine contains software which is responsible for the ongoingplay of the wagering game. However, some information or data associatedwith the play of the game may be obtained during the ongoing play of thegame from server 640. Thus, the gaming system 610 displayed anddescribed may be configured to execute and display a variety of primarywagering games and community or progressive wagering games on theterminals [GM(1)-GM(N) 650, WGM(1)-WGM (N) 654, GM-M 624, and WM-M 626],as explained further herein.

As seen in FIG. 6, the central gaming facility 612 may be used tooperate, administer, control, award, display, and manage the time basedprogressive awards of a community event, such as the one displayed anddescribed with reference to FIG. 5. For example, the central gamingfacility 612 may store a current value of the awards 584 in memory.Moreover, the central gaming facility 612 may store a time remaining 586for each award in memory. Various software may be miming on the centralgaming facility 612 which manages the entries received from the variousplayers of the system, and associates each such entry with a playeridentifier or account. The central gaming facility 612 may manage thevarious player accounts directly, or may be in communication withanother computer or server which operates, manages, and administersplayer accounts and identifier. Thus, with each play of a primarywagering game at one or more of the gaming terminals [GM(1)-GM(N) 650,WGM(1)-WGM (N) 654, GM-M 624, and WM-M 626], the central gaming facility612 may detect such play, receive appropriate entries from suchterminal, associate such entries with a player of the terminal,catalogue such entries, and manage the progressive awards 584. Moreover,at the expiration of the relevant time period 586 for each award, thecentral gaming facility 612 may conduct the random selection of an entryfrom the eligible received entries for such award 584, and then awardthe amount of the provided progressive award 584 to the winning player.As discussed, the award 584 may be credited to a player's account orprovided to the player in any appropriate manner (for example, creditingthe credit meter of a gaming terminal at which the player is playing).

In some embodiments, to administer the progressive awards 584 and detectreceipt of entries into the selections for such awards, the gamingsystem 610 monitors communications between gaming terminals 650,654 andthe server 640 by monitoring the wired links 648, wireless access point652, and router 646. When wagers are received at the terminals 650,654,accounting information for such wagers is transmitted and monitored overthe wired links 648, wireless access point 652, and router 646. Thus,corresponding entries into the progressive awards 584 may be created andmanaged in response to monitoring of such wagering data. Moreover, tothe extent that one or more wagering games are displayed on wirelessdevices 626 and laptop computers 624 connected with the central gamingfacility 612, the system 610 further monitors communications conductedvia link 620, the internet 622 and ISP 628, and wireless access points629. It should further be understood that any of the functions describedherein as relating to the central gaming facility 612 may alternativelyor additionally be performed at the local gaming facility 618, or by anycomputer or server in communication therewith.

Turning to FIG. 7, a table 700 of an example accounting of a gamingsystem having time period based progressive awards is shown. Suchaccounting may be conducted, for example, by the central gaming facilityof FIG. 6. Such table 700 is stored in memory accessible by the gamingsystem, such as a hard drive or other memory of a system controllingcomputer. The table 700 includes a set of parameters 702 which provideinformation relevant to the gaming system being administered. In thisembodiment, the parameters 702 include the fact that the number ofgaming terminals (EGMs) in the system is 1,200, the average coin in pergaming terminal is $1,000 (per day), the contribution of coin in whichis dedicated to the progressive awards (1%), and the total dailycontribution into the progressive awards ($12,000). Thus, in this systemof 1200 gaming terminals, each terminal receiving $1,000 of wagers eachday, a total of $1,200,000 is received into the system daily. Of thatamount, 1% is dedicated to funding the various time based progressiveawards, which in this embodiment comes to $12,000 daily being fundedinto a pool used for the progressive awards. The amounts being receivedinto the pool are further subdivided and dedicated to the various timebased progressive awards in conformity with other configuration dataseen in the table 700.

The table 700 further includes group data tables 710, 720, andindividual award data tables 712, 714, 716. The individual award datatables 712, 714, 716 correspond with individual time based progressiveawards as seen in the label therein (HOURLY, DAILY, WEEKLY). The groupdata tables 710, 720 correspond to a plurality of individual awards(HOURLY through WEEKLY, and QUARTER HOUR through MONTHLY, respectively).Thus, an operator may configure, view, monitor, and track accountinginformation from the various progressive awards on an individual basisthrough the individual award data tables 712, 714, 716 or viapre-defined groups through the group award data tables 710, 720.

Within each group data table 710, 720, the columns include a Prize Poolcolumn 710 a, an allocation column 710 b, a daily contribution column710 c, an events per day column 710 d, a contribution to current column710 e, a contribution to reset column 710 f, an average reset valuecolumn 710 g, an average prize column 710 h, and a contribution per daycolumn 710 i. The prize pool column 710 a identifies the variousindividual progressive awards by name. The allocation column 710 bidentifies a percentage of coin in received which is allocated to eachof the individual progressive awards. Thus, the coin received into theprogressive pool is distributed in accordance with an allocationpercentage, shown in the second column of the table 710, 720. As seen inthe HOURLY through YEARLY awards table 710, fifty percent of coin inreceived is allocated to the Hourly award, twenty percent to the Dailyaward, fifteen percent to the Weekly award, ten percent to the Monthlyaward, and five percent to the Yearly award.

The daily contribution column 710 c indicates the amount of moneyallocated to each individual progressive award, which is the dailycontribution from the parameters table 702 ($12,000) multiplied by theallocation amount from the allocation column 710 b. The events per daycolumn 710 d indicates how many of each event will occur on a dailybasis, and thus is a function of the type of time period associated witheach of the individual time based progressive awards. For each award inthe table 710, the operator can select and configure how much of thedaily contribution will be allocated to increasing the amount of theaward (contribution to current column 710 e) and how much will beallocated to funding a reset value (contribution to reset column 7100.Thus, displayed in those columns 710 c,f are the distribution selectedby the operator for each award. For example, for the HOURLY award, 80%of coin in received for the HOURLY award will go to funding the currentHOURLY award, and 20% will go to funding a reset value (which isutilized for a subsequent HOURLY award once a prior HOURLY award isawarded).

The average reset value and average prize columns 710 g,h containinformation which shows what the average reset value and average prizeswill be for each award based on theoretical data pertaining to how oftenthe awards are triggered and how much money is funded into each award.Thus, the HOURLY award, for example, will average $250 in value, whilethe YEARLY award, for example, will average $219,000, as seen in theHOURLY through YEARLY table 710. The contribution per day column 710 ireflects the portion of the daily contribution received ($12,000 in thisexample) which is allocated to each award, and again is a function ofthe allocation percentage in the allocation column 710 b. The averageaward 710 h can be calculated as a function of the contribution per day710 i divided by the events per day 710 d, for each award. Thus, for theHOURLY award, the calculation is $6,000 divided by 24, or $250.00. Forthe YEARLY ward, the calculation is $600 divided by 0.0027397, or$219,000.

The individual award data tables 712, 714, 716 provide similarinformation for each individual award. Thus, the information containedin each table 712, 714, 716 depicts distribution information andaccounting information if all of the money received into the progressiveaward pool was dedicated to the corresponding award. For example,looking at the HOURLY table 712, the allocation column 712 b reflectsthat one hundred percent of the coin in is being funded to the HOURLYaward, as seen in the allocation percentage column 712 b. The dailycontribution amount 712 c is $12,000 in this table, since 100% of thecoin in is being allocated to the HOURLY award. Similarly, the averagereset value and average award columns 712 g,h reflect $100 and $500respectively, since the daily contribution amount is now $12,000. Theinformation in the other columns 712 d,e,f is the same as thecorresponding columns in the group table 710 d,e,f. Moreover, the otherindividual data tables 714, 716 are similarly configured with respect tothe individual awards (DAILY, WEEKLY) shown therein. The table 700 shownin FIG. 7 is an example of an accounting interface which may beconfigured and modified by an operator of a gaming system to managevarious time based progressive awards. By changing the variousparameters in the table 700, an operator may achieve a configurationwhich is desirable for the gaming system he or she operates.

The system and methods of the present invention offer substantialbenefits to players and operators alike. Progressive awards whichoperate on fixed and predetermined time based intervals provide playerswith an exciting gaming experience. By knowing when the progressiveaward will be triggered, players may feel an element of control to theirgaming experience which encourages them to wager more in an effort towin the progressive. The system, however, maintains fairness by allowingplayers with greater numbers of entries a great likelihood of winning aprogressive award vis-à-vis a player having fewer entries. Moreover, bybeing able to view both the amount of a progressive award and the timeremaining before it is triggered, gaming frenzy may ensue towards theend of such time periods in an effort to increase chances of winning anaward, to the benefit of both player and operator alike. Additionally,the integration of such a system with a player account system allowsplayers to participate and win even while not present in the operatorsfacility or engaged in game play. Other benefits are provided as well.

Each of these embodiments and obvious variations thereof is contemplatedas falling within the spirit and scope of the claimed invention, whichis set forth in the following claims.

1. A method of awarding a progressive comprising: displaying aprogressive award which increments over time as wagers are received;activating the progressive award for a predetermined first time period;during the first time period, adding a first portion of each eligiblewager received to the progressive award, each eligible wager associatedwith a corresponding player inputting the wager; for each eligible wagerreceived, allocating a first number of entries into a selection forawarding the progressive award; selecting a winning entry from allentries received during the first time period; and awarding theprogressive award to a player associated with the selected winningentry.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first number of entries isdependent upon a size of the eligible wager received.
 3. The method ofclaim 2, wherein for each eligible wager received, the first numberequals a number of credits of each such eligible wager.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein selecting a winning entry occurs after the expirationof the first time period.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstportion comprises an optional side wager.
 6. The method of claim 1,wherein the first time period is selected from the group consisting of aquarter-hour, an hour, a day, a week, a month, and a year.
 7. The methodof claim 1, further comprising updating the display of the firstprogressive award after each first portion of each eligible wager isreceived.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein each eligible wager isreceived via a gaming terminal displaying a primary wagering game. 9.The method of claim 8, further comprising displaying a randomly selectedoutcome of the primary wager wagering game for each eligible wagerreceived.
 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if aplayer associated with the selected winning entry has satisfiedeligibility requirements to receive the progressive award.
 11. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the eligibility requirements comprise havinga player account, having a player identifier, or being actively playingat a gaming terminal.
 12. A gaming system comprising: at least one wagerinput device; at least one gaming terminal; at least one display; and atleast one controller operative to: (i) cause the at least one display todisplay a progressive award which increments over time as wagers arereceived; (ii) activate the progressive award for a predetermined firsttime period; (iii) during the first time period, add a first portion ofeach eligible wager received via the at least one wager input device tothe progressive award, each eligible wager associated with acorresponding player inputting the wager; (iv) for each eligible wagerreceived, allocate a first number of entries into a selection forawarding the progressive award; (v) select a winning entry from allentries received during the first time period; and (vi) award theprogressive award to a player associated with the selected winningentry.
 13. The gaming system of claim 12, wherein the at least onecontroller is further operative to cause the at least one gamingterminal to display a primary wagering game.
 14. The gaming system ofclaim 13, wherein in response to each eligible wager received, the atleast one gaming terminal displays a randomly selected outcome of theprimary wagering game.
 15. The gaming system of claim 12, wherein thefirst number of entries is dependent upon a size of the eligible wagerreceived.
 16. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein for each eligiblewager received, the first number equals a number of credits of each sucheligible wager.
 17. The gaming system of claim 12, wherein the firsttime period is selected from the group consisting of a quarter-hour, anhour, a day, a week, a month, and a year.
 18. The gaming system of claim12, wherein the at least one controller is further operative to updatethe display of the first progressive award after each first portion ofeach eligible wager is received.
 19. The gaming system of claim 12,wherein the at least one controller is further operative to reset thefirst progressive award to a reset value.
 20. A method of awarding aprogressive comprising: using a value-input device to accept input offunds into a gaming terminal, the funds being converted into a creditbalance available to a player for wagering on the gaming terminal, inresponse to the player providing at least a portion of the creditbalance as a wager for conducting a wagering game, using a valuedetector to send an electronic communication to one or more processorssignaling that the wager has been detected; and using at least one ofthe processors to execute a wagering game program on the gaming terminaland to cause the displaying of a first progressive award and a secondprogressive award, activate the first progressive award for apredetermined first time period and the second progressive award for apredetermined second time period, during the first and second timeperiods, respectively, add a first portion of each eligible wagerreceived to the first progressive award and add a second portion of eacheligible wager received to the second progressive award, each eligiblewager associated with a corresponding player inputting the wager, foreach eligible wager received during the first time period, allocate afirst number of entries into a selection for awarding the firstprogressive award, for each eligible wager received during the secondtime period, allocate a second number of entries into a selection forawarding the second progressive award, select a first winning entry fromall entries received during the first time period and award the firstprogressive award to a first player associated with the selected firstwinning entry, and select a second winning entry from all entriesreceived during the second time period and award the second progressiveaward to a second player associated with the selected second winningentry.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein each of the first and secondtime periods are selected from the group consisting of a quarter-hour,an hour, a day, a week, a month, and a year.
 22. The method of claim 20,wherein the first time period is different in duration that the secondtime period.
 23. The method of claim 20, wherein a portion of the firsttime period overlaps with a portion of the second time period.
 24. Themethod of claim 20, wherein the first progressive award and the secondprogressive award are active concurrently.
 25. The method of claim 20,wherein at least one eligible wager received contributes both a firstportion to the first progressive award and a second portion to thesecond progressive award.
 26. The method of claim 20, wherein the firstnumber of entries and the second number of entries are dependent upon asize of each corresponding eligible wager received.
 27. The method ofclaim 26, wherein the first number of entries is greater than the secondnumber of entries.
 28. A method of awarding a progressive comprising:displaying on a display a progressive award that increments during apredetermined time period; using a value-input device to receiveeligible wagers during the time period, each eligible wager beingassociated with a corresponding player inputting the eligible wager;using a wager detector to send an electronic communication to one ormore processors signaling that the wager has been detected; for eacheligible wager received during the time period, using at least one ofthe processors to allocate a number of entries into a selection forawarding the progressive award; using at least one of the processors toselect a winning entry from all entries received during the time period;and awarding the progressive award to a player associated with theselected winning entry.